Everything You Need to Know About Making Easy Pressure Cooker Recipes

Easy pressure cooker recipes are the best way to get started using your pressure cooker! This comprehensive resource will get you started in no time!

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Did you recently buy a pressure cooker or receive one as a gift? LUCKY YOU!! Or maybe you are considering purchasing a pressure cooker and you are researching and getting your feet wet.

Pressure cookers are an amazing way to prepare food quickly and easily. The new electric pressure cookers are extremely versatile and so much safer than the older versions you may remember from your childhood.

I have grown to love mine more than I expected. You’ve come to the right place for a comprehensive resource that will have you making easy pressure cooker recipes in no time! Think of this as a one-stop-shop for all of your pressure cooking related questions.

Getting Started

If you need some help deciding which pressure cooker to purchase, I’ve compiled some helpful pressure cooker reviews here. Reading about pros and cons, features, and price points can help you figure out which model is the best choice for you. I personally use an Instant Pot IP DUO60, which I love, but there are several models available.

Once you have a pressure cooker, it’s actually really easy to get started making easy pressure cooker recipes with it! Barbara at Pressure Cooking Today has a great tutorial that walks you through the basic steps of performing a water test to become acquainted with your cooker, as well as information about a quick pressure release or a natural pressure release. Once you’ve done those steps, you’ll feel more confident and ready to actually make food in your pressure cooker!

What to Make in Your Pressure Cooker

There are so many options of foods to make in your pressure cooker, many of which may surprise you! When you are just getting started, it’s best to begin with recipes that are specifically for the pressure cooker. That eliminates a lot of the guesswork for you and provides you with exact steps so you can enjoy success with your newfound kitchen gadget!

I’ve also posted some of my favorite easy pressure cooker recipes for you to enjoy! Click here or on the image below to view a list of wonderfully easy pressure cooker recipes that you will want to make over and over again!

I also have a Pinterest board of pressure cooker recipes that you’ll definitely want to check out and follow!

One of the trickiest aspects of pressure cooking is determining cook times. If you need help with figuring out cook times for various food items, this chart is by far the most comprehensive one I have found. I love it because it breaks everything down by category (grains, beans, vegetables, meats, etc.). Meats are broken down by thickness in one chart and by cut in another, which is helpful. It also tells you how much time to add to the cook time if your meat is frozen. Cook times are provided for both stove top and electric cookers, and it also tells you whether to use a natural or quick pressure release. How useful!

How to Convert a Slow Cooker Recipe to a Pressure Cooker Recipe

Once you have had some success with recipes specifically for the pressure cooker, then you can experiment with recipe conversion.

If you’re like me, you probably already have several family favorite recipes that you throw into a slow cooker early in the day and enjoy later for dinner. But, like me, you’ve probably had days where you forgot to throw everything into the slow cooker earlier in the day. Dinner time rolls approaches and you’re left wondering, “What’s for dinner??”

I have great news for you! Most slow cooker recipes can be tweaked a little to be made in the pressure cooker, but in a fraction of the time. Yes, really! You have to make a few minor adjustments to convert a slow cooker recipe to a pressure cooker recipe, but it’s so easy to do.

I even created a FREE printable cheat sheet that you can slide into your recipe binder for those times when you need to glance at a reminder of how to convert the recipes. Find out how to get your FREE printable as part of a guide to getting started with pressure cooking here.

Going a Step Further: Making the Most of your Pressure Cooker’s Versatility

An electric pressure cooker is great for making easy recipes quickly, but today’s cookers do much more than that! For instance, my Instant Pot Duo60 has several additional capabilities that really make it an extremely versatile appliance.

Yogurt Making

Yogurt making is another awesome function offered by the Instant Pot. I’ve been making my own yogurt for years, but I’ve only recently started using my pressure cooker as the incubator for culturing the yogurt. Making homemade yogurt may seem intimidating, but it’s actually a really simple process! You can read about my tried and true method here.

Practice, Practice, Practice!

Just like any cooking method, the more you practice, the more comfortable you will get with it. The good news is, pressure cooking is not anything new. As it becomes more mainstream with the growing popularity of electric pressure cookers, it is easier than ever to safely use a pressure cooker.

Take notes when you try something new, so you’ll know what worked or didn’t work. Read the recipes and tips of others, then incorporate those into your own cooking. You can do this! And once you get started, I doubt you’ll ever want to go back to life without your pressure cooker. 🙂

I also recommend checking out the Electric Pressure Cooking 101 class to help you gain even more confidence with your pressure cooker. The self-paced course will help you learn how your pressure cooker works and how to cook certain groups of food. It also includes a two-week meal plan with shopping lists! You can click the image below to check it out!

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New to Pressure Cooking?

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Free 1-Week Meal Plan of Pressure Cooker Meals

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